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Sunday, January 26, 2014

How Close Is the Kingdom?

Jesus launched his public ministry by proclaiming, "The Kingdom of God is at hand." What does that mean? Where is the Kingdom of God? Of course, ultimately the Kingdom of God is heaven. But it must accessible now, or why else would He say it was "at hand"?

The Kingdom of God is not a place. It is a way of life. The Kingdom exists wherever Christ reigns. It exists in the heart of every one who accepts Him as King. And it is the job of each of His subjects to extend that Kingdom. The first step is not to hide the fact that one is a member of His Kingdom. Rather, you start by bringing the Kingdom with you wherever you go. It means being what Paul told us we are to be: "ambassadors for Christ" (2 Cor 5:20). We represent Him wherever we go. And then, we are to build little outposts of the Kingdom wherever we can. It's a kind of colonizing that brings only goodness and love to the natives. Our biggest opportunity lies where we reign. For most of us, this would be our own homes, but whether you also run a corporation or merely share a room with a sibling or roommate, everyone has some say over one's own space. As ambassadors, we must each establish an embassy of the Kingdom. An embassy, remember, is a small station of its home country, lying in a foreign land. When you enter an embassy, you enter that country, even though it's surrounded by another nation. It's up to me to transform my domain into a microcosm of the Kingdom.

About Me

I have an M.A. in literature from Catholic University and a B.A. in English and History from Franciscan University. A freelance writer and editor, I have copyedited Catholic books for over 25 years and written for Our Sunday Visitor Newsweekly, St. Austin Review, Franciscan Way, Catholic World Report, Voices, Faith and Family, and New Covenant.
My wonderful husband and I have six precious children.
I'm currently writing a book under contract with Ignatius Press, and thus not able to post here as often. Please keep me in your prayers!

Where the Rubber Hits the Road

About this blog

Where the Rubber Hits the Road discusses what it really means to follow Christ in today's world. There's a lot more to it than warming a pew. Going beyond theory and trying to live out one's faith isn't easy, but the rewards are all worth it. The author being Catholic, some of the posts will come specifically from that perspective, but she hopes that most will still inspire anyone striving to follow Jesus or anyone considering doing so.

The Catholic Corner Books & Gifts

Catholic Corner Books & Gifts

If you live in the Baltimore metro area, make sure to visit The Catholic Corner Books & Gifts. This family business (which the Floods helped launch) has loads of First Communion gifts and other gifts too: paintings, rosaries, cards, jewelry. Plus hundreds of terrific books on the Faith--from children's novels to prayer books to apologetics to inspirational and more ... too many to describe!

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